Lawyers vs Justice

Organised society is about justice, but what is justice? It is a set of principles, rules and convention developed over time to ensure orderly conduct of life within each society backed by systems of sanction for those who fail to comply. Law is codification of such systems to allow communication of required standards, a basis for consistent application and guides judgement and sanctions accepted by that society. Black letter law.

Ultimately justice is about providing a safe, predictable environment where all members of society can live their lives; about protecting commerce, the weak against the strong and preventing law that favour the few. Lawyers are about case presentation; judgement is about interpretation, balance and apportioning guilt, plus determination of sanctions.
It is unsurprising that over the millennia of civilisation multiple legal systems have evolved in multiple environments; each have developed to serve their societies individual growth; they vary from summary judgement and limb mutilation with focus on the victim to those that have become so perpetrator friendly as to make crime a good career! I can only comment on the latter.
The old adages ‘Justice must be seen to be done’ and ‘Justice delayed is justice denied’ remain a foundation but it is axiomatic that justice, and it’s application, is perceived differently by different societies and achieving convergence towards global law is an impossibility. Maybe even undesirable? (a good reason why the ICC is doomed?)
Corruption or human rights are interpreted differently by societies thus what is right in one society is wrong in another. Equally, it is apparent that the administration of justice, almost without exception, is dependent upon the money or political influence available to accused. Trials that go on for ever, treason and personalities (allegedly) guilty of fraud and theft, sitting presidents charged with heinous crimes or the sports personalities who get away with murder are broad example of perceived injustice. One law for the rich and another for the poor!
The ongoing financial fracas is a consequence of just this. The ‘professional’ classes, the lawyers, the auditors, the bankers, the rating actuaries have (nearly) all reneged on their principles to uphold the law, regulatory rigour and they abused fiduciary positions of privilege; the word, not the spirit. Loopholes, ambulance chasing and obfuscation have become the mantra; standards have dissolved in a soup of cash.
Thus we have a world where the multitudinous poor have been feeding the financial food train. The Asian car worker earns a tenth of his USA counterpart, but is equally productive. The global players, taking advantage of different legal systems, have outsourced the polluting and high labour input activities to localities where abuse equals cheapness. The industrial mammoths have been able to ratchet up wages and prices in their countries, claim lower pollution, higher productivity and better conditions at the expense of outsourced sweat shops. A great trick! It has backfired.
A recent editorial in this paper bemoaned the uninformed and ridiculous comments made by some Namibian Parliamentarians; this is not only a Namibian problem. It is this ignorance that has enabled the ‘professionals’ to gain influence over governments as ‘the application of legislation, law and justice are based upon ‘advice’ from these classes. Think about it.
Good democracy requires debate and diverse inputs. Good companies require good labour relations. Good countries require a population who feels justice is done.
The current world situation is a consequence of the law framed ‘in justice’ but with an outcome of ‘injustice’. Mammoths are extinct. Are lawyers, their associates and their greed the driving force towards societal extinction?
csmith@mweb.com.na